With latest party switch, Louisiana GOP within one vote of House majority

State Rep. Fred Mills of St. Martin Parish has become the latest lawmaker to defect from the Democratic Party and join the Republican ranks.

File photoRep. Fred Mills

His move, confirmed by Louisiana Republican Party spokesman Aaron Baer and aides to Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal, gives the House GOP Caucus 52 members, widening the plurality it achieved just weeks ago and putting the party within one vote a majority for the first time since post-Civil War Reconstruction.

Mills did not respond to messages about his decision. It is widely known among Capitol observers that he is contemplating a bid for the state Senate seat vacated by Troy Hebert's acceptance of Jindal's appointment as commissioner of Alcohol and Tobacco Control. Rep. Simone Champagne of Jeanerette already had joined the Republicans in preparation for the special election for the Hebert seat early next year.

Democrats still heavily outnumber registered Republicans in both Mills' House district and the surrounding Senate district, but the gap has closed in recent years, and the voting trends in state and federal elections point overwhelmingly in the GOP's favor. Hebert, who was elected to the House and Senate as a Democrat, had already cast aside party affiliation to become an independent.

Mills' switch did not appear to be a widely orchestrated maneuver. House Speaker Jim Tucker, R-Algiers, learned of the news from a Times-Picayune reporter, as did state Democratic Party spokesman Kevin Franck, who declined comment. Tucker called the move "interesting," and noted that it continues the GOP's recent momentum.

After the 2003 election cycle, Louisiana Democrats held all but one statewide office and enjoyed comfortable margins in both legislative houses. Seven years later, Jindal is a relatively popular Republican governor and overwhelming favorite for re-election next year, and Attorney General Buddy Caldwell and U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu remain the lone statewide elected Democrats. When the new Congress convenes in January, the Louisiana House delegation will include just one Democrat, Cedric Richmond, who was elected by the state's only majority African-American congressional district.

As recently as the spring, Mills was considered among the Democrats' best hopes in the 3rd Congressional District, which was being opened by Democrat Charlie Melancon's bid for the U.S. Senate. At the time, Mills cited uncertainty over the district's long-term prospects in redistricting after the 2010 Census. Republican Jeff Landry won the seat easily.

Mills owns Mills Cashway Pharmacy in Parks. He is also a branch president and chief executive officer of Farmers-Merchants Bank & Trust Co.

He serves on three house committees: Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture and Rural Development; Civil Law and Procedure; and Health and Welfare.